Research News

Toshiba Launches Industry’s Largest Embedded NAND Flash Memory Modules

Alan Niebel — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 16:36:47 GMT

Body:

Toshiba Launches Industry’s Largest

Embedded NAND Flash Memory Modules

e-MMC^TM Compliant Embedded Memories Combine up to 128GB NAND

and a Controller in a Single Package

IRVINE, CA, June 16, 2010 — Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. (TAEC) and its parent company Toshiba Corporation* (TOKYO: 6502) today announced the launch of a 128-gigabyte (GB)⁽¹⁾embedded NAND flash memory module, the highest capacity yet achieved in the industry⁽²⁾. The module is fully compliant with the latest e-MMC^TM ⁽³⁾ standard, and is designed for application in a wide range of digital consumer products, including smartphones, tablet PCs and digital video cameras. Samples will be available in September, and mass production will start in the fourth quarter (October to December) of 2010.

Toshiba 128GB e-MMC Modules

The new 128GB embedded device integrates sixteen 64Gbit⁽⁴⁾ (equal to 8GB) NAND chips fabricated with Toshiba's cutting-edge 32nm process technology and a dedicated controller into a small package 17 x 22 x 1.4mm^(5).Toshiba is the first company to succeed in combining sixteen 64Gbit NAND chips, and applied advanced chip thinning and layering technologies to realize individual chips that are only 30 micrometers thick.

Toshiba offers a comprehensive line-up of single-package embedded NAND Flash memories in densities from 2GB to 128GB. They integrate a controller to manage basic control functions for NAND applications, and are compatible with the JEDEC e-MMC^TM Version 4.4 and its new features. New samples of 64GB chips will also be available from August.

Demand continues to grow for large density chips that support high-resolution video and deliver enhanced storage, particularly in the area of embedded memories with a controller function that minimize development requirements and ease integration into system designs. Toshiba has established itself as an innovator in this key area, and is now reinforcing its leadership by being first to announce a 128GB generation module.

New Product Line-up

Product Number

Capacity.

Package

Sample Shipment

Mass Production

THGBM2T0DBFBAIF

128GB

237Ball FBGA

17x22x1.4mm

Sept. 2010

4Q, 2010

(Oct.-Dec.)

THGBM2G9D8FBAIF

64GB

237Ball FBGA

17x22x1.4mm

Aug. 2010

4Q, 2010

(Oct.-Dec.)

Key Features

· The JEDEC e-MMC^TM V4.4 compliant interface handles essential functions, including writing block management, error correction and driver software. It simplifies system development, allowing manufacturers to minimize development costs and speed time to market for new and upgraded products.

· The 128GB device stacks sixteen 64Gbit chips fabricated with leading-edge 32nm process technology. Application of advanced chip thinning, layering and wire bonding technologies has allowed Toshiba to achieve individual chips only 30 micrometers thick, and to layer and bond them in a small package. The result is an embedded flash memory module with the industry’s highest density.

· The new products are sealed in a small FBGA package only 17 x 22 x 1.4mm and has a signal layout compliant with the JEDEC e-MMC^TM V4.4.

Specifications

e-MMC^TM

Interface	JEDEC e-MMC^TM V4.4 standard HS-MMC interface
Power Supply Voltage	2.7V to 3.6V (memory core); 1.65V to 1.95V / 2.7V to 3.6V (interface)
Bus width	x1, x4, x8
Write Speed*	21MB per sec.⁽⁶⁾ (Sequential/Interleave Mode) 21MB per sec. (Sequential/No Interleave Mode)^*
Read Speed*	46MB per sec. (Sequential Mode/Interleave Mode) 55MB per sec. (Sequential/No Interleave Mode)^*
Temperature range	-25degrees to +85degees Celsius
Package	153Ball FBGA （+84 support balls）

^* Target figures.

⁽¹⁾When used herein in relation to memory density, gigabyte and/or GB means 1,024x1,024x1,024 = 1,073,741,824 bytes. Usable capacity may be less. For details, please refer to specifications.

⁽²⁾ For embedded NAND flash memory modules. Source: Toshiba, June 2010.

⁽³⁾ e-MMC^TM is a trademark and a product category for a class of embedded memory products built to the JEDEC e-MMC^TM Standard specification.

⁽⁴⁾ When used herein in relation to memory density, gigabit and/or Gbit means 1,024x1,024x1,024 = 1,073,741,824 bits. Usable capacity may be less. For details, please refer to specifications.

⁽⁵⁾ Planned to be standardized to JEDEC specification.

⁽⁶⁾ For purposes of measuring read and write speed in this context, 1 Megabyte or MB = 1,000,000 bytes. Maximum read and write speed may vary depending on the device, read and write conditions, and file size.

*About Toshiba Corp. and TAEC

Through proven commitment, lasting relationships and advanced, reliable electronic components, Toshiba enables its customers to create market-leading designs. Toshiba is the heartbeat within product breakthroughs from OEMs, ODMs, CMs, distributors and fabless chip companies worldwide. A committed electronic components leader, Toshiba designs and manufactures high-quality flash memory-based storage solutions, discrete devices, displays, advanced materials, medical tubes, custom SoCs/ASICs, digital multimedia and imaging products, microcontrollers and wireless components that make possible today’s leading cell phones, MP3 players, cameras, medical devices, automotive electronics and more.

Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. is an independent operating company owned by Toshiba America, Inc., a subsidiary of Toshiba Corporation, Japan’s largest semiconductor manufacturer and the world’s third largest semiconductor manufacturer (Gartner, 2009 WW Semiconductor Revenue, April 2010). Toshiba was founded in 1875, and today operates a global network of more than 740 companies, with 204,000 employees worldwide and annual sales surpassing $68 billion.

For additional company and product information, please visit http://www.toshiba.com/taec/.

Information in this press release, including product pricing and specifications, content of services and contact information, is current and believed to be accurate on the date of the announcement, but is subject to change without prior notice. Technical and application information contained here is subject to the most recent applicable Toshiba product specifications. In developing designs, please ensure that Toshiba products are used

within specified operating ranges as set forth in the most recent Toshiba product specifications and the information set forth in Toshiba’s “Handling Guide for Semiconductor Devices,” or “Toshiba Semiconductor Reliability Handbook.” This information is available at www.chips.toshiba.com, or from your TAEC representative.

http://www.toshiba.com/taec/news/media_resources/gallery/128GB-eMMC.html

Attachments: http://webfeet.sp360hosting.com/Lists/Research News/Attachments/37/100610 TAEC eMMC 128GB NR FINAL II.docx

NetApp Customers Purchase More Than a Petabyte of Flash Cache for Greater Performance and Storage Efficiency

Alan Niebel — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 16:33:44 GMT

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NetApp Customers Purchase More Than a Petabyte of Flash Cache for Greater Performance and Storage Efficiency

SUNNYVALE, CA, Jun 16, 2010 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- NetApp (NTAP 41.40, +0.40, +0.98%)customers looking to improve performance and storage efficiency have purchased more than one petabyte (PB) of NetApp(R) Flash Cache capacity since its introduction in September 2009. By incorporating flash memory as intelligent cache in its unified storage systems, NetApp helps customers optimize performance without adding complexity, while decreasing both capital and operating expenses. Customer adoption and industry standard tests underscore NetApp's success in helping customers make the most of their data centers with Flash Cache.

As an alternative to adding a storage tier of solid state disks, NetApp applies solid state technology as intelligent cache to optimize performance for workloads such as file services, messaging, virtual infrastructure, and Online Transaction Processing databases. Flash Cache modules are easy to install, require no ongoing administration, and automatically cache data that is under high demand to provide read times at least 10 times faster than hard disk drives and to help reduce storage system costs by up to 50% for mainstream applications. Each Flash Cache module can provide performance equivalent to dozens of high-performance disk drives, helping customers realize substantial savings by configuring storage systems with fewer, larger, and cheaper hard disk drives.

"Using flash memory to automatically cache frequently accessed data gives customers the speed and accessibility they need without sacrificing simplicity and efficiency," said Patrick Rogers, vice president of Solutions and Alliances at NetApp. "Customers have validated our distinct approach to solid state technology by purchasing more than 5,000 caching modules so far. They also buy Flash Cache with nearly 20% of the systems for which it is available, which is significantly higher than estimated attach rates for vendors that offer flash as persistent storage. Caching can give customers an easy, cost-effective way to apply solid state technology for better storage system performance."

One NetApp customer seeing real-world benefits from Flash Cache is Apache Corporation. Apache is a $29.53 billion independent energy company that explores, develops, and produces natural gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids. To meet growing customer demand, Apache is placing greater emphasis on its exploration and production efforts. This involves intensive geologic and seismic modeling using a collaborative, high-performance 64-bit Windows environment. In the last four years, data volumes have grown 700%, to 3.5PB. Apache uses Flash Cache to optimize its exploration efforts and shorten the time it takes to get product to its customers.

"Decreasing our time to discovery is vital to the company's continued success, and we need solutions that can keep up with the pace and scale of exploration and give us a competitive advantage," said Bradley Lauritsen, manager of Exploration Computing at Apache Corp. "With NetApp Flash Cache, we're seeing nearly a 70% cache hit rate in a shared seismic working environment, eliminating the need for the system to retrieve data from the SATA drives 70% of the time. This helps deliver data in seconds instead of minutes or tens of minutes, which keeps our geoscientists working efficiently and effectively."

The effectiveness of Flash Cache has also been demonstrated with the industry standard SPECsfs2008 benchmark for Windows file services. In a set of three published results, NetApp demonstrated that a storage system with Flash Cache and SATA disk drives can provide 50% more capacity and deliver performance comparable to the same system configured with more than twice as many high-performance Fibre Channel disk drives. The configuration with Flash Cache and SATA drives also costs 57% less per terabyte, uses 59% less rack space, and reduces power consumption by 66%. To view the Flash Cache SPECsfs2008 benchmark results, visitwww.spec.org/sfs2008/results/res2010q2/ .

Flash Cache modules (previously called PAM II) use enterprise-grade SLC NAND flash memory and are available in 256GB and 512GB sizes, allowing up to 4TB of intelligent cache per storage system. NetApp now also offers 2TB SATA disk drives, which together with Flash Cache can reduce overall storage costs without compromising performance for many applications.

To learn more about NetApp Flash Cache, visit www.netapp.com/us/products/storage-systems/flash-cache/ .

For more details about Apache Corporation's use of NetApp technology, go tohttp://media.netapp.com/documents/apache-corp.pdf . For additional perspective on NetApp's petabyte achievement, visit Mike Riley's blog athttp://blogs.netapp.com/efficiency/ .

Discuss this news in the NetApp Community, where you can exchange thoughts and ideas on a variety of topics with our community members. Collaborate with our company and engage in conversation with NetApp leaders and employees, our customers, and our partners. Participate in our passion to go further, faster. Join now atwww.netapp.com/us/communities .

About NetApp NetApp creates innovative storage and data management solutions that accelerate business breakthroughs and deliver outstanding cost efficiency. Discover NetApp's passion for helping companies around the world go further, faster atwww.netapp.com .

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